9.  The application was initially introduced by Mehmet Kurnaz who was born in 1956 and was living in Antalya. Following his death on 22 December 1997, his parents, brothers and sister (hereinafter: “the applicants”) expressed their intention to pursue the application on 30 June 1998. The applicants were born in 1927, 1929, 1954, 1950 and 1958 respectively and live in Antalya.
10.  Mehmet Kurnaz was a member of the United Socialist Party (Birleşik Sosyalist Partisi) at the time of the events in question. The applicants claimed that he was in poor health as a result of the ill-treatment he had received during his previous periods of police custody.
11.  Between 22 May and 19 June 1986 Mehmet Kurnaz was treated at the Faculty of Medicine of Ege University (hereinafter: “Ege Hospital”) for pain in his left leg. The doctors noted that he suffered from an obstruction of the popliteal artery in his left leg and that this could have resulted from an application of pressure to the leg.
12.  On 12 February 1987 Mehmet Kurnaz was diagnosed as suffering from Buerger’s disease. On 16 February 1987 he was operated on (femorotibial posterior bypass) at Ege Hospital.
13.  On 21 August 1995 Mehmet Kurnaz applied to the İzmir branch of the Human Rights Association of Turkey for treatment. The medical report issued in respect of Mehmet Kurnaz noted that he suffered from Leriche syndrome, chronic renal insufficiency and hypertensive heart disease. It was recommended that Mehmet Kurnaz immediately begin medical treatment, preferably while interned at a hospital, and that he remain in a stress-free and calm environment. In this same report it was also mentioned that Mehmet Kurnaz had stated that he had been subjected to various types of ill-treatment during his six periods of detention in custody between the years 1973 and 1982. As regards Mehmet Kurnaz’s medical history, it was noted that he suffered from popliteal artery thrombosis and as a result had undergone bypass operations in 1985 and 1986. In 1994 Mehmet Kurnaz was diagnosed as suffering from chronic renal insufficiency. His medical history also referred to the fact that he had smoked a packet of cigarettes a day over twenty years.
14.  On 1 September 1995 Mehmet Kurnaz was remanded in custody. On the same day he was brought before the Antalya Forensic Medicine Institute for a medical examination. The doctor noted that there were no physical signs of ill-treatment on the applicant’s body.
15.  On 11 September 1995 he was transferred to Buca prison.
16.  On 21 September 1995 Mehmet Kurnaz was wounded with a blow to his head during a prison riot and was hospitalised for treatment. The applicants claim that he was deliberately attacked by prison officers and gendarmes. The Government deny this.
17.  On 21 September 1995, at around 16.25 p.m., Mehmet Kurnaz was admitted to İzmir Atatürk State Hospital. According to the provisional medical report issued the same day, he had sustained facial trauma, ecchimoses and oedema and in particular had a cut of 4 cm on his left frontal lobe and 5 cm on his left parietal lobe.
18.  Mehmet Kurnaz remained in hospital until 25 October 1995. The applicants alleged that he had been chained to his bed during this time.
19.  According to the investigation conducted by three public prosecutors at the İzmir prosecutor’s office (hereinafter: “the prosecutors”), the events had unfolded as follows; detainees awaiting trial for alleged membership of an illegal armed organisation or accused of aiding and abetting that organisation, namely the DHKP/C (Turkish People’s Liberation Party/Front) were held together in dormitory no. 6. They made a certain number of demands. When these demands were not met, they refused to be counted by prison officers. The detainees failed to comply despite warnings and as a result gendarmeries were enlisted to enter dormitory no. 6 by force. The detainees piled metal cupboards against the steel door and the gendarmes had to use welders to force their entry into the dormitory. Once inside, the gendarmes used tear and smoke gas and pressurised water to quell the detainees who broke windows and started a fire. The detainees attacked the gendarmes with metal door handles. During the intervention, fifteen gendarmes were injured in varying degrees by a sharp object. Forty detainees, including Mehmet Kurnaz, were injured in various ways and three detainees subsequently died.
20.  On 12 October 1995 the prosecutors decided not to prosecute the prison officers due to a lack of evidence. They submitted, in particular, that it was established that only gendarmes had entered the dormitories and used force and that there was no evidence to show that prison officers had intervened in the riot or ill-treated the detainees. As regards the gendarmes, the prosecutors gave a decision of incompetence ratione materiae and transferred the investigation file to the İzmir Governor’s Office.
21.  On the same day, the prosecutors filed a joint bill of indictment against the detainees, including Mehmet Kurnaz, accusing them of rioting. The charges were brought under Article 304 of the Criminal Code. The indictment refers to a number of documents, which are not included in the case file, including photographs and statements of the detainees.
22.  Meanwhile, on an unspecified date, criminal proceedings had commenced against the applicant before the İzmir State Security Court. He was accused of membership of an illegal organisation. In a hearing held on 25 October 1995 Mehmet Kurnaz was brought before the İzmir State Security Court with the help of gendarmes as he was unable to stand or to walk. The court ordered his release pending trial.
23.  Upon his release, Mehmet Kurnaz was examined by a doctor who noted coloured lesions of various shapes and sizes and bruises on his body. The doctor also noted that Mehmet Kurnaz was unable to respond to questions and that his face was swollen. It is to be noted that these findings are typewritten and do not bear the signature of the doctor concerned.
24.  On 10 November 1995 Mehmet Kurnaz’s lawyers filed a petition with the court complaining about the extensive injuries sustained by him at Buca prison.
25.  On 2 August 1996 the public prosecutor at the İzmir public prosecutor’s office decided not to investigate Mehmet Kurnaz’s allegations of ill‑treatment on the ground that there was already a decision of non‑prosecution against the prison officers in respect of the same event and that the case file against the gendarmes was before the İzmir Governor’s Office. Mehmet Kurnaz’s objection against this decision was dismissed by the İzmir Assize Court on 31 October 1996. He was notified of the dismissal on 14 November 1996.
26.  According to the supervision notes (Gözlem Kağıdı) of Dr Aktekin at Akdeniz University Hospital (hereinafter:“Akdeniz hospital”), dated 22 January 1996, Mehmet Kurnaz complained of loss of feeling and numbness in his legs and that he had difficulty walking. She noted that Mehmet Kurnaz suffered from memory loss and that his CAT scan results revealed inflammation on his left temporal lobe. She considered these findings to be the result of the head injury received by Mehmet Kurnaz.
27.  On 24 January 1996 the Antalya Assize Court, acting as proxy, requested the Forensic Medicine Institute to assess whether Mehmet Kurnaz could give a statement before the court. The Forensic Medicine Institute, relying on the medical reports issued in respect of the applicant at Akdeniz hospital, submitted that until the completion of his medical treatment, Mehmet Kurnaz’s state of health would not allow him to give a statement.
28.  Between 29 February and 7 March 1996 Mehmet Kurnaz was hospitalised at Akdeniz hospital for medical supervision of his chronic renal insufficiency and hypertension.
29.  Between 16 April and 26 April 1996 Mehmet Kurnaz was hospitalised at Akdeniz hospital so that an AV fistula (vascular access for haemodialysis) could be performed on him in order to prepare him for haemodialysis treatment.
30.  On 2 May 1996 Mehmet Kurnaz commenced haemodialysis treatment twice a week at Akdeniz hospital.
31.  Between 6 June and 11 June 1996 Mehmet Kurnaz was hospitalised at Akdeniz hospital on the ground that he had an infection in his subclavian vein as a result of the AV fistula.
32.  On 22 October 1996 İzmir State Security Court acquitted Mehmet Kurnaz of the charges against him.
33.  According to the medical report of Akdeniz hospital, dated 4 February 1997, Mehmet Kurnaz had widespread hyperplastic arteriosclerosis, serious aorta iliac arterioscleroris and obstruction as well as widespread atrophy and infract in the brain. Therefore renal transplantation was not possible.
34.  On 22 December 1997 Mehmet Kurnaz died of renal insufficiency.
35.  The criminal proceedings against the prisoners were suspended pursuant to Law no. 4616 on Conditional Release, Deferral of Procedure and Punishments on 25 December 2000.